First Christmas Without You

The nights are long and cold; the sun is hardly around.
Christmas time is approaching, and snow will soon cover the ground.
Trees and lights are twinkling; stockings are being hung.
The Christmas spirit is all around as carols are being sung.
This year Christmas is not the same, just a yearly memory.
This house is not a home anymore because you are not here with me.
There will be sadness; there will be tears when we wake up on Christmas day,
For this will be the first without you; oh, how I wish heaven was just a mile away.
As we sit around the Christmas tree, emotions will be sad.
Gifts for them, gifts for me, but none of them will say DAD.
All I want for Christmas is to see your smiling face.
I know it cannot happen because you are in a better place.
Please...DAD ring a bell for me on Christmas day
So I will know you got your wings and that you are okay.
I am not looking forward to Christmas, but I know it's something I have to live through.
I hope there is Christmas in heaven, because it is not the same here without you.

I am touched by the beauty of your poem. It made me cry. I lost my dad 4 years ago. That was so hard. He was my rock. He helped me through it all. I lost my heart the day he passed. It was a sudden death. We did not expect it. The person who took it the hardest was my mom. She was full German and knew nothing of how to pay a bill or drive. My dad did it all. Mom had Alzheimer’s. These last 4 years she wanted nothing but to be in dad’s arms.

This year in July I was married 25 years to a guy named Randy. He had COPD. In March of this year I turned the big 5-0. On my birthday I came home to find my husband passed away, sitting in his chair. What a 50th birthday. On November 1st my mom finally gave up and went to heaven to be with Randy and Dad. She is so happy now. I feel it. I want her back so bad, but I know she is better and happy. This Christmas is going to be so hard, and I’m trying to keep a brave face for the kids and all.

I lost my Daddy July 1st of this year (2018). We, as a family, do not really know how to do Christmas this year. Do we stay with tradition or do we try something different? The thought of not having my daddy here at Christmas is, at times, too hard to think about. He LOVED Christmas. He Loved his family, and this is going to be a very hard time for us all.

We live in different cities, but Christmas is the one time we are all together and that will not change. We need to be together in order to get through this pain. The true meaning of Christmas will always remain the same, but there will be a very bright light missing from our Christmas tree and there is no one to blame. We so loved our husband, father, grandfather and great-grandfather, but GOD loved him more, so I know Daddy you first Christmas in Heaven you will adore. We love you and we miss you so very much. I do know with prayer and the love we have for each other we will get through this first Christmas without you.

I have to tell you, I lost my dad too July 1st of this year. It was his 96th birthday the day he died. My family is also trying to find a way to spend Christmas without dad. My thoughts and prayers go out to you and your family that you find a new way to still remember your dad. I know we will always miss him as you miss yours. Set a place for him at the table.

by Ginelle

5 months ago

Hello Kylia,
I'll be experiencing my very first Christmas without my dad too this year. He died on February 17, 2018, and December has been very hard on me. He LOVED Christmas as well, so it's been tough seeing others happy and excited for the holidays. To be honest, I just want to get it over with. It's been rough and it's hard to find a positive out of this. I wish you and your family the best of luck though and that it's not as bad as you think it will be. Maybe our dads are hanging out and talking to each other as I type this. Anyways, Happy Holidays.

by Josie Jones

5 months ago

Hi! I just wanted to say how sorry I am to hear about the loss of your Dad. I, too, lost my Dad on the 15th of October 2018, so I am still struggling so hard with my grief. This poem is just what I was thinking about .... first one without Dad. Sending you love, thoughts and prayers for your first Christmas without your dear Daddy.

by A Stranger

6 months ago

Celebrate Christmas as you always would have. Keep the tradition at least for this year. You will cry, you will laugh, you will miss him. But from that star on top of your tree, he will be looking and laughing and smiling, and enjoying your Christmas with you, today and forever. Hope you have a good Christmas and a relaxed holiday season. With love from Canada.

by Mary Burdick

2 years ago

This is also the first Christmas without my father. Twenty-six years ago my sons and I also had to endure the first Christmas without their father and my husband. Their grandfather, my father, stepped up to help me raise them and keep them on the right path. I am very proud of my sons and the young fathers they have become. I know it was because of the guidance they received from my father. We all miss him terribly but know that God has taken him home and he no longer is in any discomfort. I, too, would like to hear that bell ring on Christmas morn knowing that he is now having Christmas with God and my husband. My prayers and love is going out to all of those who have lost someone dear to them.

I don't feel much like decorating,
I'm not feeling the Holiday "cheer".
There is one person missing,
One person I wish was here.
I realize he would want me to be happy,
to enjoy my daily life.
But EVERY day my heart is breaking,
for myself, and for his wife,
These people that I speak of,
I call them Mom and Dad.
Christmas is coming.......
but all I feel is sad.
I know I need to change my thoughts,
and think a different way.
But everyday, I miss my Dad.
and wish he were still here today.
Some tell me to get over it,
You'll be better off. Stop being sad.
To those I say, "it's obvious to me,
You didn't have such an awesome Dad"